Portable building



June 12, 1928.

G. F. HOBSON .PORTABLE BUILDING Filed oct. 1. v1924 8 Sleek-'Shed 5 G. F. HoBsoN PORTABLE BUILDING- Fi1ed-"oct-1, 1924 E@ 7.

' une 12, 192s.

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G. F. HoBsoN PORTABLE BUILDING t Filed oct.1. 1924 asneets-Shaot 6 1755.22. figg 23- gmantoz June 12, 1928.

G. F. HOBSON 150m-ABLE BUILDING Filed Oct. 1l 1924 8 Sheetsheeb 7 @www/mg?? m 1%2@ M June 12, 192s. 1,613,738

G, F. HossoN PORTABLE BUILDING Filed ot. 1, 1924 8 sheets-Sheet a i Patented June i12, 1928.

UNITED STATI-:s PATENT OFFICE..

GEORGE Ir. Bonson, or THE UNITED sTATns Amar, WASHINGTON, I IsTnIcT 'or COLUMBIA.

PORTABLE BUILDING.

Application filed October 1, 1924. vSerial No. 741,050.

'(GaAIITnn man THE rnovIsIoNs or Tim AcT or mincir 3, Issa, sa sTAT. L., esas.)l

The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes without payment vto me of any royalty thereon.

This invention relates to a demountablo and portable structure` and more particularly to a demountablebuilding usually of one story, especially adapted for Army use, wherein the structure is composed as nearly W as possible of interchangeable and reversible units, each unit in turn consisting or made up of interchangeable and reversible parts.

In a structure of the character and for the purposes specified, the objects sought 5 are sim licity, durability and econom'.

One o ject being, therefore, to provide a .structure of a simple character to enable its manufacture in the shortest space of time,

thereby aiding in volume production, as well i as to widen the ield for production purposes, said simplicity of construction of the units and sub-units as well as in the erection operation, requiring relatively little expert knowledge and thereby permitting a 25 more permiscuous selection of untrained assistants for the work.

Another object being durability, thus providing for the use of the structure over a long period in which the same may be con- 80 stantly used as assembled or withstand numerous disassembling, transportation and assembling operations, with a minimum de, terioration of the arts. i

Another object eing economy including B5 absence of waste of wood in construction,

time of labor, space in transportation, salvage value and the least number of units required to provide the greatest variety of structures representing the numerous types er 0 of buildings required for Army and ot uses.

A further object being, after a careful study, of standard lumber obtainable in the United States and in foreign countries as to v4:5 its length, width, thickness and character;

Vthe floor space and head room needed in buildings of this character, the ventilation and other hygienic roblems to be met, due to the various c imatic conditionsV in this and -in foreign countries; the

various buildings required, such as administration, officers quarters, combined mess and quarters, oicers mess and school, barracks, combined kitchen and mess, combined administrative and recreation ward building, camp hospital, storehouse and stables, etc. relatlve to their capacity, dimensions, division and partitioning necessar for the various uses and many other con itions involved, to provide units ofA a form and construction, having the greatest common utility in the various buildings required., and to provide a construction in which the various types of buildings required would have the maximum number of corresponding parts which not only simplifies construction but reduces the variety and therefore, the volume of spare units to be constructed, stored and transported, when providing for maintenance, extension and replacement or repair work.

A further object being to avoid all pecuiiar. or odd forms of joints, with the result that with very few exceptions all joints and cuts are square. Mortise joints of all forms are avoided wherever possible, and when necessary, are formed byl offsetting of the parts, thus avoiding all lau er, chisel, saw and other tool work, with its loss of time and material. Again, in no instance are the roof or exterior wall'panels bored, their -securing means being battens or overlapping strips, thereby, not only saving considerable time in construction but the avoidance of damage during erection and dismounting of said parts, and the difficulty of matching or alining the -borings through which bolts would pass if such a method was used..

A further object being to provide a construction which may be progressively built in a manner to permit not only the simultaneous employment of a relatively large number of men on the work, but to avoid, as far as possible, any interference beteween the gangs of men employed on the different lsteps of the erection o ration. Further the elimination of units o odd sizes and shapes and the adoption of those of an interchan able, and in many instances, a reversile character; the adoption of securing means other than nails or the like, that cause damage to the parts; providing effective securlll ing means with a minimum or borings; and the reduction as far as variety is concerned, in the tools necessary lfor erection purposes, a Spanner wrench ot one size only, -being all that is necessary, and by diminishing the may be conveniently erected, added to, or

reduced, in the minimum time, by unskilled labor, the parts ci2 which will nest, in such a manner as to occupy the minimum space during transportation or in storage, and one that may be assembled in such a manner as to permit disassembling, with practically no loss oi material or damage to the units or parts thereof.

Economy being further-served in that the units and sub-units, and in fact, the entire structure and parts thereof call for lumber oi standard stock lengths or divisions thereof, which enables the'cutting ol all parte without waste. l

rlhese and other objects will appear in the llollowing description and be linally pointed out in the claims:

Similar numerals indicate corresponding parts in all the iigures of the drawings in` which:

Fig. l' is a vertical cross section of a demountable building embodying a preferred form of this invention.

Fig-2 is a horizontal section of a portion ,of same.

o Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the completed structure.'

Fig. l is a perspective of the structure partlybroken away. l

Fig. 5 is a face view of one length of floor panel.

Fig. o shows a face and end view of an-` other length o floor panel.

Fig. 7 is a face view'of one length of roof panel..

Fig. 8 is faceand end view oi another length' of roof panel.

Fig. 9 is face and edge view of one form et partition panel.

Fig. l0 shows face and end views of. a solid exterior wall panel.

f Fig. ll showsfface and end views of a wmdowpanel. v

Fig. l2 shows -iace and end views of a *door panel.

Fig. 13 is a` detail view of one end .of a tirainzw'erse sill and one intermediate sill,

I es ood o portion of tho odjoioi-og longitudine o bers notarse Fig. i6 is a similar view of an end iframe complete.

Fig. 17 shows details of the separate mem going to make up an intermediate frame.

Fig. 18 is an enlarged perspective view of the trame cluster at the eaves of roof.

Fig. 19 is a similar view ot the parts at the base of one oi the studs.

Fig. 2O is a perspective View of end of joist audits connection with sill. 1 Fig. 2l is a section through joist and lloor Fig. 22 is a vertical section through a longitudinal partition to show shoe and cap.

-Fig v23 is a vertical section through av transverse partition.

Reference now being had to the drawings by numerals, 1 indicates the 'foundation piles, which may be ot any preferred material of approximately 6 inches in diameter, tor instance, of wood driven or buried in the ground 3 or t feet and projecting a.

suthcient distance to permit the setting' of the sills thereon, out of contact with the ground, a lag screw 2 of sucient length usually passing through the sill into the foundation pile. Should cement piles be used, a bolt of the proper length is reversed, set in the upper end of the piles, and projects from the top oi the pile a suliicient distance to extend up through the sill and liti-l on which a. washer and nut may be threado ed to securely anchor the sill to the pile.

The piles which are preferably arranged in rows of three on ten-'loot centers, representing the width of the building, said rows being arranged on six-foot centers in the desired number as required in the length of the building, said building extending in length in units of twelve lect.

.Restingon the 'piles and arranged longii tudinally of the building are sil 3, cross sills 4 are arranged at the ends of the building. rlhe end sills extend the lull width of the building (20 feet) and are composed of two beams secured together. The longitudinal sills 3 are built up of two beams preferably in units. of twelve-'toot lengths, said beams being offset to provide' a mortise 5 of approximately Sinches at each end (see'Fig.

13), thus providing beams of an interchangeable and reversible character having mortises llii at both ends.

rho omouootrounding poovidoorroo io- 20 n l2 feet, the longitudinal sill members being in ,twelve-foot units, providing for building runitsol twelve toet each.

The unitjframes lare fabricated prior to 1?!)- ilt lifting into place, and consist of one twentyfoot joist 6 adapted to extend entirely across the building, projectinoV or extending Vertically from either end of said joist are studs 7 built up, if preferred, of three 2 x 4 beams .of equal length, the center one being upset the width of the joist 6 which is ordinarily six inches in Width, thus providing a mortise 8 at the bottom and a. tongue' 9 at the top, of the studs. Said studs at their base being secured to the joist by bolts 10 passing through the joist and lowerends of the two outer members of t-he studs.

Secured at one end to the upper end of the studs are roof rafters 11 composed preferably of two 2 x 4 beams spaced apart the width of the tongue 9 at the upper end of the studs to which it is secured by bolts 12 and rests on the upper ends of the two side members of the studs, said roof rafters abutting endto end at the ridgeof the-roof at 13 and are spaced approximately two inches apart. Between the lower ends of said roof rafters isinserted a2 x 6 tie beam 14, extending preferably entirely across the building, the upper edge of said tie beam being flush with the upper end of the tongue 9 of the stud, and is secured between the members ofthe roof rafters by bolts 15 passing through the members of the roof rafters and the intermediate en'd of the tie 14.

Arranged a short distance below the ridge of the roof is a 2 x 6 collar beam 16 inserted between the membersof the roof rafter and secured to same by bolts 17.

Extending from the upper edge of the collar beam 16 to the lower edge of the tie beam 14 is a 2 x 4 hanger beam 18, which is bolted at -its ends, as shown at 19 and 20, to the collar beam 16 and the tie beam 14 respectively.

rlhe above described frame consists of a iloor jolst, two side studs, two roof beams, a-

' tie beam, a collar beam, and a'hanger beam,

which are all cut, prepared and bored at the mill and shipped to the site for erection, said parts are fabricated at the site of the construction in horizontal position and then lifted into place on4 top of the sills at Afourfoot centers. I

Arranged on top of the longitudinal sills and fabricated with same vat the mill is a spacer member 3d, cut away to provide seats 3* for the lower end of the studs at four-foot centers. Said spacer is also provided with cut away portions 3b midway between cut away portions 3a in which intermediate floor joists 6n rest on the sills. Said member 3d acting as a spacer, between the floor joist 6- and 6a which are laced on two-foot centers from one side to the other of the building.

At the time the sills are fabricated at the mill there is also secured to the outer vface 4thereof a 1 x 4 strip 3 running lon 'tudinally of said sill member, thus provi ing a p support on which' the lower end of the ex- .terior `wall panels, may rest when placing spacer at 6c and extendbeneath and be bolted to the joist as shown at 6d.

As the unit frames are adjusted into their vertical positions on the sills at four-foot centers, the upper ends thereof are spaced a corresponding distance apart and held by a ribbon board 21 a proximately'l x 6 inches extending along tlie inner face of the j'oist, just beneath the tie beams 14, said ribbon board being bolted through each stud as seen at 22. Said ribbon board is usually 12 feet long which represents the securing of 4 unit frames in place. Y

The floor panels 23 consist of units of approximately 4 x 8 feet composed of longitudinally extending standard floor boarding 24 and transversely extending dressed and matched boarding 25, said underlying board is of a length equal to the full width of the floor boarding 24 but stops short at one end 26 and overlaps at 27 at the other end, to provide a mortise joint as seen at 28, approximately one 4inch and a half over each joist 6 on which they lap and are secured by screws. .Cover boards 23a ,are secured around the outer edge of the flooring panels.

The floor panels 23 as well as roof panels, the latter being described later, are made in two lengths or 8 and 4 feet, it being understood that unit extensions o r lengths of buildin s are 12 feet in length by 20 feet in widt thus providing floor space that is a multiple of units'of 8 x 4 foot lengths by 4 foot widths.

The exterior wall panels are made up in numerous forms such as solid panels 29, window panels 30, and door panels 31, all of which areof the same general dimensions 8 x 4 feet, and in their erection are stepped at their lower ends on the stri outer face of the sill and on sind strip adjusted in line with the position they are to assume in relation to the., studs and then pushed up into place and'secured by battens 3 on the 32 lapping the two adjoining ends of two the stud.

The battens l32 extend from the up er edge of step piece or strip 3 to the un er face of the roof, and retain inplace aremovable strip, referred tov later.-

The exterior wall panels 29 at the end of the building are `the same dimensions as those used on the-sides of the building or' 4 x 8 feet.v `The exterior end wall panels or. gable panels above the tie beam 14 as seen at 29", are retained in place by vertical are also provided with doors where desired. The ends of the building are framed in as follows:

The end' intermediate studs 7 corner studs 7", tie beam 14, rafters, collar beam and hanger, arel the same as in the intermediate frames with the exception that the tie beam consists of outer and inner beams. The intermediate studs 7 are of a two-member construction, the outer member 7c resting at its lowerend on the sill 4 and extending up in a continuous piece above the tie beam 14 to the under edge of the roof rafters, and is cut on an angle corresponding with said edge. The inner member 7d of the stud extends from the upper edge of the floor joist to the lower edge of the tie.

beam and from the upper edge of saidtie beam in a separate piece tothe upper edge of and between the roof rafter and is cut at an angle correspondin with said edge. The inner members'7d of t e studs are bolted to the outer member 7c. Bolts extending through the studs and battens 32 secure the exterior wall panels in place.

The upper exterior end or gable. panel members 29b are constructed in the same manner as the other panels, are secured in a corresponding manner and are cut to fit the itch of the roof Irafters. The exterior cards of said panels are adapted to rest against the outer face of the roof rafter. The Outer surface of end tie beam rests within the outer surface of the roof rafter and to` fill out and provide a surface against' which the lower ends of the gable panels mayl rest, a; ller piece letb approximately 2 x Gis secured to the outer face of the tie beam 14 said end tie beam with its filler piece may be fabricated at the mill, it being understood that the filler piece is cut away to allow for the outer member of the gable end studs.

Vertical battens 32'L and horizontal battens 32 runnin parallel with Ithe tie beam are located as escribed to retainthe side edges and lower ends of the gable panels and the side edges and upper ends ofthe end panels in place. As a seal and finish at the upper surface of the gable panels a bar e board approximately 1" x 8" is provide extending from the ends ofthe horizontal batten to the ridge. Said pieces being bolted to the end roof rafters and secures the upper4 ends of the gable panels in place. 4 l It is note that the door and window panels are all fabricated with the fragile yparts within the dimensions of the panels is a done aththe mill under the most advanis, as far as possible,A

ltageous conditions and not left to be completed at the site of building, thus avoiding the necessity for a large number and variety of tools, as well as as a high grade of labor, for erection work.

The roof may be covered if the period oi time the building is to stand warrants it, by any suitable ready roofing or if the building is to be a more temporary character, the

ordinary tar paper or rubberoid roofing may v be employed. v

their ends, means for removably -securin the sills to the piles, spacer members, an

side panel supports permanently mounted on the sills, unit intermediate and end frames each having wall studs, a floor joist, roof rafters and a tie beam, removably fabricated and adalted to reston the sills between the sacers, oor joist hangers adapted to anchor t e frames in placa/intermediate wall studs and rcof panels of correspondin dimensions adapted to be removably secure to saidunit frames for the purposes described.

2. A unitary demountable building; structed of lumber of standard lengt s and standard length divisions thereof, comprised arranged in the end-`l` frames, and floor, wallin combination with 'foundation piles, of fabricated end and fabricated unitary; side sills, means for removably securing t side, and side and end sills together at their ends, mean-s for removably securing the sills to the piles, spacer members, and side panel e unitary supports permanently mounted on the sills, unit intermediate and end frames each hav- V ing wall studs, a oor joist, roof rafters and a tie beam, removably fabricated and adapted to rest on vthe sills between the spacers, floor joist hangers adapted to anch'or the frames in place, intermediate wall studs arranged in the end frames, and floor, wall and roof'panels of correspondin dimensions adapted to be removably secure to said unit frames for the purposes described.

3. A demountable building, constructed of lumber of standard lengths and standard `length 'divisions thereof, comprised in combination with foundation piles, of fabricated side and end sills, means for removably securing the sidel and end sills together at their ends, consisting of abutting the squared end ofthe side sills'against the side of the cembinaiaion with ouidatien piles of fabri-y cated side and end siiis, spacer members and suppering strips permanently secured on siiis, demountable abiicateoi unit frames adeptef te resi; in spaced eimzion on fthe siii and i'ibbon been?. seeme to the 'inner i faces "a s n files9 Side panels sied of? foubie' micimess umiiei, inner thickness adepte im ies': mi the i El HBSN? Umm, M; @c 

